I can't believe her! Yuffie thought as she ran in the direction of Edge. She would abandon her friends - the friends who keep her memory alive, who love and honor her for what she did for the planet? She would say 'to hell with them' just to chase after some idiot-
Her thoughts were cut off, however, as she noticed a pale blue-green glow on the horizon. She tried to think of what it could possibly be, but eventually shrugged it off. I feel like I've seen it before, though... she thought to herself as she continued to run.
Her thoughts turned to Vincent's own decision, and her heart sank. I expected him to understand as well... so why did he opt to abandon Edge as well? I thought we understood one another by now... now, I'm not sure I understand him at all.
She shook the feelings of betrayal from her mind and started to imagine all the possibilities as to Edge's problem. Cloud and Tifa are there, at least, so I'm sure they'll put up a fight. It's not like Edge will go down without a defense being mounted first.
As she drew nearer, her thoughts drifted back to the pale blue-green glow she had spotted earlier, and she noticed it seemed to be growing brighter the closer she got to-
She stumbled as she came to a stop, the momentum of her run nearly knocking her off her feet. "The Lifestream..." she whispered, eyes widening. "That's the same color as..."
She allowed herself not another word, nor another thought. She pushed on at maximum speed, more desperate than ever to reach Edge.
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Aeris watched Torvio as the Arva concentrated, his eyes closed. "Almost?"
He nodded wordlessly.
Vincent watched silently, arms crossed. "May I ask what he's doing, exactly?"
Aeris looked at Vincent. "Torvio has an affinity for manipulating plants. He's trying to locate Saahan using plants, whether they be trees, leaves, vines, airborne seeds..."
"Hm... his aura mutated approximately... two miles west of Edge."
"Mutated?" Aeris asked, dreading the worst.
His answer made her sigh with relief. "Well, shifted is more accurate. His aura 'mutated' in such a manner that it transformed him into his owl form. Pardon; mutation of one's aura is considered natural to the Arva."
"Can anyone mutate their aura?" Vincent asked.
Torvio chuckled, opening his eyes. "It's within anyone's ability to perform, yes. Success, however, is exceptionally slim. That I'm aware of, only Arva are able to 'mutate' with the greatest of ease. Others who try - and fail - oftentimes end up causing irreversible damage to themselves, at the minimum."
Vincent couldn't fight back the cold chill that passed through him at the thought.
"As for Saahan's whereabouts, the trees of the mountains west of here have caught his aura. He appears to be flying in the general direction of that military town..."
"Junon," Vincent said simply. "Why would he go to Junon, though? What's-"
"The underwater reactor, maybe?" Aeris offered. "I don't see any other reason, either..."
"...Was Edge intended as a distraction for us?" Vincent asked quietly. "Did he attack Edge simply because he wanted to keep any pursuers busy?"
"It's possible," Torvio said, shaking his head as though to clear it. "Excuse me a few moments; prolonged inquiry of the flora can be tiresome and dizzying at times." Once he felt sufficiently recovered, he continued. "Saahan's ruthless; he'll put others in harm to keep himself out of harm's way. He always expects - for some odd reason - the softer, caring side of people to emerge in dire times, and probably believed his pursuers - us - would go to help Edge, as opposed to giving chase."
Aeris shivered. "That's not ruthless... that's-"
"Cold and heartless. The method of a true psychopath," Vincent said bluntly.
Aeris looked at both of them and gave a slow nod. "We ought to make our way toward Junon as fast as possible. Torvio, is there any shortcut we can-"
As though on cue, three enormous buds burst above the ground and opened to reveal space enough to fit one person each. "I found this very rare plant centuries ago," Torvio said with a grin. "Travel buds; they travel underground at high speeds to take the passenger to random locations, when not guided by someone. Luckily, I'm here to guide these three."
"Will these things get us to Junon before Saahan?" Vincent asked warily, eyes upon the interior of one of the travel buds. "I've become rather claustrophobic as of late, and if we're going to get to Junon after Saahan, I'd rather-"
"It's faster than walking, Vincent," Aeris said, stepping toward one of the travel buds. "We don't have a means of traveling through the air like Saahan does, and overland travel would force us to go around the mountains - or try hiking them." She rested a hand upon the travel bud. "This is our best choice. Besides, you, claustrophobic? Weren't you in a coffin for-"
Vincent shot her a severe look. "Yes, but that doesn't mean I enjoyed my stay in the coffin. I followed all of you seven years ago in order to find a chance to exact revenge upon Hojo, true... but I also couldn't stand being in the coffin after being alert for that brief time."
Aeris giggled while Torvio simply grinned. "We'll arrive mere seconds after Saahan does. From there, he will take to walking to avoid drawing unwanted attention to himself. Oh, and whatever you do," he added with a somber look, "do not thrash inside the travel bud. They get, ah... 'irritated', and are not afraid to dispose of their passenger at any time."
Vincent glared at the travel bud he had a feeling he was going to be traveling in. "...If this fucking thing inadvertantly buries me underground, then so help me..." he grumbled, stepping toward it reluctantly.
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Saahan landed upon a branch, hooting softly.
"Yes?" he heard Azyr ask. He shifted to his humanoid form, balancing carefully upon the branch.
"You're a wild card, through and through. I sensed Torvio's 'eyes' upon me moments ago." He looked around, searching for Azyr. "You played a part in that."
"I did. I also alerted them to your attack on Edge."
"And their plan?" He gave up trying to locate her. "Are they saving Edge, or pursuing me?"
Azyr's soft laugh seemed to echo everywhere at once. "That ruins the surprise, brother."
He sighed. "Step into the open, Azyr. I feel strange talking to open space like this."
"I'm leaving shortly; elsewhere to be."
"That's an excuse." He resumed searching for her. "I visited your sanctum for a reason, sister."
"I'm aware. When was the last time you ever visited just for the sake of visiting?"
He leapt off the branch into a small clearing ringed by multitudes of flowers, all of them different colors and sizes. His eyes flicked to the break in the canopy of trees around him to regard the clear night sky, scanning the stars and moon.
"I hate it here," he said simply. "Too... peaceful. It's deceiving, considering the state of matters outside your sanctum."
"It makes for ideal concentration," was her only reply.
He closed his eyes and envisioned Azyr's face behind his closed eyelids. "My experiment was far too unstable for my preferences. Even now, the area surrounding Edge crumbles away. I lack precision, as Riuni has."
"Force her to do it for you."
"I don't need her, or so you told me. I've not been able to locate her since New Shinra collapsed. Odds are she was killed by the collapse; I see little other explanation." He paused for a moment. "Suggestions?"
"One. With Riuni missing, you lack steady access to an Arveborne. Ironically, you now require an Arveborne in order to further your independence."
"The 'devouring' of an Arveborne, yes. I thought of it as well, and was disheartened to learn I've lost Riuni for that purpose. The precision an Arveborne possesses is far greater than what I possess... yet they lack the power."
"So create another."
He snorted. "The only ones who know - and likely understand - the Arva's situation are either deceased, or actively opposed to me. I-"
"Are you not the guide?" Azyr interrupted. "The one who leads those who are lost?"
He paused. "You're suggesting I control and overtake..." His voice trailed. "...Yes, perhaps that is the best course. I'd hoped to cease the needless mind control, but once more, it seems..."
"You remember the process, I take it-"
"Of course I do; it just never dawned on me that it was the way." He opened his eyes to find Azyr standing directly in front of him, her eyes aglow from the moonlight.
She smiled softly. "Then go. Three pursue you to your next destination. One does not."
He felt a grin creep to his face. "Perhaps the catastrophe at Edge isn't without purpose after all..." he murmured quietly, transforming into an owl once more. He flapped his wings and flew out of Azyr's sanctum, intent on reaching Junon once more.
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It was a nightmare in her eyes.
Yuffie felt her knees give out, yet didn't feel herself fall to them. She felt tears well up in her eyes, but didn't feel them roll down her cheeks. She felt her throat scream, but heard no sound.
The town of Edge, as she remembered it, was no longer there. The busy streets, the center of town, the monument... none of it lay before her eyes.
In its place was a crater of pale blue-green substance. The scene reminded her of Mideel in so many ways, it terrified her.
Saahan... sank Edge into the... into the Lifestream...? repeated over and over in her mind. It was the only thought she had.
She wished the nightmare away, but realized, with much pain, that the scene before her was very real.
Edge is gone... she thought, struggling to stand. She wanted to scream in anger, in despair. She had a sudden urge to leap into the Lifestream pooled in the crater, to daringly save the lives of those that were inevitably killed - no, murdered by Saahan.
She knew she wouldn't survive such a foray, however.
Edge was lost, and there was nothing she could do to save it or its people.
She slowly registered what her other senses were trying to convey to her. She smelled the Lifestream's scent, and it immediately made her think of Aeris, for one reason or another. She could taste the bile building in the back of her throat as the severity of the situation hit her all at once and threatened to make her sick. She heard voices calling out to her right-
She blinked. Voices...? Are there survivors? She looked to her right, and stood shakily. She placed one foot before the other, moving toward the voices.
She felt a new wave of tears surge to her eyes as she recognized the most... dominant voice present. She felt her legs pick up speed as she broke into a run. She felt her arms wrap around the figure of Tifa in a tight hug. "Y-you're alright!" she squeaked, her voice suffering from disuse.
Tifa's eyes widened in surprise. "Yuffie? What's-" She hugged the Wutain back, closing her eyes. "I-I didn't know you were here!"
"I just arrived, and... and saw..." Yuffie's euphoria at seeing her friend faded as the image of the destroyed Edge filled her eyes once more. "What happened here...?"
Yuffie could feel the barmaid shudder, and looked up at Tifa.
"It... without warning, the monument just... exploded in a mess of... of Lifestream. The... it spread, crumbling from the center. It stopped after a moment, near the edge of the square... before the weight of the buildings apparently... crumbled the earth rimming the pool..." Tifa sobbed. "We- people ran scared, trying to escape the quickly collapsing ground. Cloud and I, we did what we could to get people out, before Edge..." She gestured wordlessly to the crater.
"...And Cloud?"
"He's... he's here, but... he fell into the Lifestream. Just his left arm, but... I-I've never seen anything like... like this before..." She reluctantly let go of Yuffie and turned to the crowd of people behind her. "These people you see here... they're the only ones that made it out of Edge alive."
Yuffie's eyes bulged in shock. She took a swift headcount, and (after identifying Cloud's spiky blonde hair and picking Marlene and Denzel out of the group) trembled.
"Three dozen..." she whispered. "Only thirty-six survived...?"
Tifa nodded grimly, the thought disturbing her as well. "I... I have no idea what caused this... it all happened so fast..."
Yuffie's mind flicked to the midnight black form of the owl that was Saahan, and she felt her hands clench into fists. "That fucking asshole will pay for this..." she murmured quietly.
Tifa caught her words and grabbed Yuffie's shoulders. "Someone caused this?" she exclaimed. "Who was it, Yuffie? You know, I know you do! Who's the one responsible for-" The barmaid's eyes went wide in pain as Yuffie shook her head. "Y-you can't... you have to tell me, Yuffie! Only three dozen of us made it out! If someone caused this, it's murder of the worst- no, it's borderline genocide!"
"You think I don't know that?" Yuffie retorted, locking eyes with Tifa. "I can't tell you, because then you'd all be involved in-"
Tifa, for the first time in a very, very long time, slapped Yuffie as hard as she could. "We would be involved?" she shrieked. "Look around you, Yuffie! How are we not involved already?"
Tifa's words struck Yuffie harder than the slap did, and caused the Wutain to fall silent.
Tifa seized Yuffie's shoulders once more. "Answer me, dammit!" she demanded. "We'll make the one responsible pay for this dearly, so just-"
A cacophony of screams rose above Tifa's voice, cutting off her words. She looked behind her to see the crowd of survivors pointing in the direction of the crater, and looked to it herself.
A small tendril rose from within the Lifestream, the tip moving in their general direction. Tifa's jaw dropped, her legs began to quake.
It was moving towards her-
She gasped as the tendril seized Yuffie's left wrist and began to pull her into the air. Tifa grabbed Yuffie's right hand, attempting (in vain, she knew) to hold her down. "Yuffie!" she cried out.
The tendril, however, proved much stronger than the barmaid's grip, and pulled Yuffie from her - directly into the pool of Lifestream.
"Yuffie!" Tifa screamed, hand outstretched uselessly in the direction of the spot where Yuffie was pulled under.
Yuffie panicked the entire time, wondering if she was going to die. She felt something compress all around her, as though she were encased in a full body cast. The only color that filled her eyes was the pale blue-green of the Lifestream. She tried to cry out, but once again, her voice abandoned her.
The smell of the Lifestream eventually overwhelmed her senses, and caused her to pass out.
Not much else can be said about what just happened without giving anything away.
It. Is. HELL out there. I live in the northeast, and we probably had almost two feet of snow today. I know we had at LEAST a foot before I left the house... it's stopped snowing since then, but it's still madness out there. Winter is officially here now... as much as it hurts to say it.
Next chapter, Aeris, Vincent and Torvio arrive at their destination together. From there, they begin to seek out Saahan himself. What they uncover in their search, however, puts the situation well into perspective for them... and when they get a chance to confront Saahan himself, why are they so willing to NEGOTIATE with him? -Spritslayer